30 Rounds
by Don Trump 4
Summary: <html><head></head>During the First Tiberian War, Anto Marik has to fight off GDI within the power plant he works at and escape. Will he make it? Rated T.</html>


Hey everyone, this is my first story ever on here. Some constructive criticism would be nice, but I'm really wondering if the style I write in is any good. Hope you enjoy reading what I enjoyed writing!

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><p>"Yellow Alert!"<p>

Anto Marik's workstation in the Nod power plant suddenly began to flash with bright yellow lights coming from industrial beacons. At first it caught the personnel off guard, but by the third alert announcement, everyone realized what was going on.

GDI has infiltrated the base, and Marik's power plant as well.

Marik quickly glanced around. He was situated in a small office area 1 floor below the surface, which had corridor access to an elevator that leads to the reactor itself. The office had a dozen desks, each staffed by technicians and one engineer. The main entrance to the office lead to main service elevators, pipelines, and other rooms. Normally there was a guard situated in the room, however he was probably drawn away by the fighting outside.

He checked his subordinate technicians. Half were looking bewildered to say the least, and the rest were downright panicking. _Civilians_, Marik thought, _always have guts until they enter a war_.

But even he was shaken by the announcement. He knew that GDI were making offensives in the Czech Republic, where he was stationed, but having a battle outside the door? How did they get here so fast?

He'll have to try to get these people out, but without a soldier, will they live?

"You heard the Com," Marik addressed his subordinates. "GDI has broken through to the base. We need to get out, NOW!"

He began to move toward the exit, but then quickly remembered about the pair of analysts in the reactor. They don't implement an alarm there.

"Go without me! I gotta get the others!" Marik shouted as he sped off to the reactor elevator.

XXXX

The first sight that greeted him was a dead Nod soldier leaning on the wall next to the reactor elevator as he stepped out. Blood was plastered on the white ceramic walls with little holes in them. He could still hear shots being fired farther down.

_Must be the security detail_, Marik grimly thought. There was a pair of soldiers that guarded the reactor and its analysts. This one apparently tried to run away. _Coward_.

Marik noticed the M-16 he was clutching in his cold left hand and snatched it up. Unlike technicians, Nod engineers received basic combat training as well. Marik checked the slide. Nothing in the chamber. He then took out the magazine.

30 rounds.

After chambering in around, Marik began to search the guard's packets for extra ammunition, but then a GDI busted out into the corridor.

_Shit._

The GDI man-no, he was too young to be a man- immediately pointed his weapon at Marik. But before the boy could line up his shot, Marik swiveled the M-16 and let off a burst.

26 rounds.

The GDI boy instantly cried out and ducked for cover behind a door frame. None of Marik's shots hit him, unfortunately. He began to yell out in his native tongue-sounded German-, presumably for reinforcements.

Marik decided to use this time to get back in the elevator. He frantically pressed the button that lead back to his office.

As the door was closing, the GDI boy's backup arrived. One of them, an older man in his 20s, started running for the elevator while spraying ammunition at Marik.

Marik already had his rifle up, and, despite the man's suppression, squeezed off 2 bullets.

24 rounds.

The man let out a cry and fell down, to Marik's satisfaction, just as the doors closed.

_Shit Shit Shit Shit Shit. _How did GDI bypass the elevator system? There was no way they… Oh. Marik thought that they may have rappelled down the cooling tower and penetrated the walls to the understation.

The elevator doors opened and Marik began to check the hallway for more intruders. He could only hope that his technicians with no combat experience got out alright.

Seeing that the coast was clear, he began to sprint down the hall to the workstation.

Right into 3 GDI soldiers, who just opened the workstation door.

Marik temporarily lost his sanity and let out another burst.

17 rounds.

The center one fell instantly; his friends scurried back in the workstation, with one dragging his dead comrade's bloody corpse with him. Marik retreated back down the brightly lit hallway to the bathrooms.

GDI already had fire-teams in the power plant this far down! There is no way in Kane that his subordinates escaped. _What do I do now?_ He wondered.

He couldn't go upstairs through the 2 remaining GDI. Even if he could, there would only be another incursion squad waiting for him topside. He couldn't go back down. He doesn't even know how many are down there, and there is no escape that way. Speaking of the reactor team…

Marik peeked his head down the far end of the hall just in time to see the reactor elevator open, revealing the GDI boy and his older friend, who apparently was still very much alive despite taking 2 bullets to the chest. He took the rifle out and let off a couple shots.

14 rounds.

The boy immediately went prone on the ground, while the older one got on one knee and started suppressing the bathroom entrances. Marik ducked his head out just as a bullet passed by and lodged itself in the restroom wall plaster behind him. He could hear the older one shouting, presumably at his cowardly companion for him to advance. _I'm not going to check, though,_ He thought silently.

He heard the workstation door open. Another burst of fire came out from the elevator toward the workstation, as yells from within increased.

Marik smiled to himself. Friendly fire may help even the odds.

But that thought was too no avail, as the bursts immediately stopped, and all he could hear over the alarms was the communication between the 2 teams. Time to put a stop to that.

Marik pulled the M-16 in front of the door post and let loose a couple more in either direction.

10 rounds.

He could hear their conversation get cut off as they frantically moved back behind the door frames on either side.

_How will I get out?_

Marik went deeper in the bathrooms and entered a stall. He looked up at the ventilation system. _Too small._ _Shit._ What else was there? He looked at the ceiling. It was solid concrete, with some incandescent light bulbs hanging off. He looked at the floor. Ceramic tiling. Underneath that would be… too late to get to.

He heard the GDI outside the bathroom moving and presumably taking positions. Marik rushed to a wall in the bathroom and looked out.

The young one was just in view, holding a grenade. Another's armor was barely in view, he couldn't tell who. Maybe he could shoot the grenade…

Marik slowly raised his rifle and aimed. After a couple seconds, he held the trigger.

9 rounds.

The boy's hand immediately shot out a rush of red. He dropped the grenade and started screaming while holding his bloodied hand. One of the workstation GDI let loose a burst in the bathroom, forcing Marik back into cover.

He missed the grenade, and hit the boy's hand instead. _No!_

Marik needed to buy himself more time. He put the rifle beside the wall to fire and… quickly put his M-16 back to his side after another burst of bullets came his way.

He will have to suppress his enemies more quickly this time, so he could retreat to the bathroom stalls. Oddly enough the stalls themselves were bulletproof. He quickly jammed his weapon beside his wall and let out a little stream.

4 rounds.

Marik began to run to the stalls, and let out a couple more bullets to keep them discouraged.

2 rounds.

He was in the stall now. Now what?

Marik decided to check his ammunition. He took out the box magazine from the M-16. Inside was one measly bullet. That meant he had one more in the chamber and,

_Shit. 2 rounds._

Even if he suddenly was possessed by a perfect marksmanship, he would still have to face 2 soldiers without ammo.

One pair of boots started walking down the bathroom strip. Marik quietly put his own on the stall, and then stood up, with rifle pointed in the direction of the footsteps.

It was one from the workstation. Marik let one loose toward him.

1 round.

The man's head exploded by the bullet's impact. He was thrown down backwards at the cry of his teammates, who then decided to let loose at Marik. He ducked just in time to hear the oddly beautiful music of fully automatic weaponry and the ricochet off concrete.

_ They can't penetrate in here._

But does that matter? He's stuck with one bullet and 3 angry GDI outside who may want to take it out on him slowly. He heard the reports at Bialystok, GDI sending flame tanks at innocent civilians. If they were willing to do that to innocents, what would they do to one who, say, killed at least 2 of their number? Maybe they might cut him into little pieces. Maybe they'd pour liquid Tiberium on him. Marik shuddered.

Suddenly, that last bullet was starting to look friendly to him. He never thought about ever considering it, but then again, who does? He won't be taken alive by these GDI dogs. He'd die for Kane in honor.

He pointed the rifle upwards and fired.

0 rounds.


End file.
